Google’s New Shopping Feature Promises to End Delivery Time Guesswork

More Accurate Delivery Times = Higher Purchase Probability

Google Merchant Center can now automatically update shipping data for products. Not only based on what you set in the interface, but also based on historical data from actual orders or data obtained from your website through Google crawler.

For customers, this means a more accurate estimate of when they will actually receive the goods. For e-shops, better credibility and potentially higher conversion rates, especially compared to competitors who don’t display similar data or have inaccurate information.

How Does Shipping Work in Google Merchant Center?

The feature uses two types of data:

• Crawled shipping speeds – Google monitors what you display about shipping directly on your website and compares it with what’s in Merchant Center.
• Performance shipping speeds – the system evaluates actual delivery times from previous orders if the e-shop shares tracking data through a partner or Content API.

If it obtains this data, it can automatically update shipping information displayed in Google Shopping and other formats.

What Currently Applies to the Local Market?

The functionality currently works actively only for the USA, but e-shops outside the United States can already sign up for the system and begin technical preparation – connect their accounts, enable website crawling, or ensure collection of historical delivery data.

While this feature isn’t running in our region yet, Google already allows preparing everything in advance. For e-shops, this is a chance to tune their systems before the feature expands. The moment it arrives here, they can be immediately in the game.

How to Prepare Now?

1. Enable the Google StoreBot crawler – it will load shipping data from your website.
2. Integrate Order Tracking Signals through Content API – if your system allows it.
3. Connect Google Merchant Center with a partner that can provide tracking data – such as logistics or technology partners.
4. Enable automatic updates option in Merchant Center settings – it will be inactive for now but functionally ready.

Even though this functionality currently has no direct impact on local e-shops, Google may introduce it globally within several months. If a merchant gains a competitive advantage in the form of accurate and automatically updated delivery data, they may gain higher visibility and customer trust.

Customers increasingly monitor not only price but also when they will receive their package. And Google takes this behaviour into account when evaluating campaign performance.